Gregorian Chant in Latin

Alistair Warwick

Language and use in worship

The title of this article immediately poses the question: why sing in Latin, when our services are in our own language?
For that matter, we might well ask if our services are in fact in English / Welsh / whatever, since
we actually use a ritual language rather than that spoken in
everyday use.

How often do we greet someone we know with the
words 'The Lord be with you' and expect the answer 'And also with
you' (or 'And with thy spirit')? More likely we will say 'Hi, how are
you?', and probably hear back 'Hello, fine thanks', rather than a
genuine answer to the question – if indeed our greeting was
intended as a serious question.

Given, then, that formal worship actually uses a stylised, ritual
language, the use of Latin may not be entirely anachronistic.
Even a little understanding of another language can help throw
light on a text we know well.

Jesus tells us (Luke 14:33) that no one
can be his disciple unless they give up "all their possessions". When this phrase is heard in French,
tous ses biens can help us to
realise that Jesus is asking us to prefer discipleship even over all
these good things that we have.

Short refrains in Greek, Latin (and other languages) from Iona and Taizé have introduced
many of us to the idea of singing in
another language, and to make these texts more widely-known.
After a while we stop translating – for example,'dona nobis
pacem' as 'give us peace' – and simply get on with singing and
praying it. It is not so much thinking in another language, as
recognising that the text is embedded, becoming second nature to
us, feeding us. The text – and its vehicle, the chant – provide us, as
it were, with a distilled spirit, from which we can taste the
goodness of the Lord.

We are what we sing

Members of monastic communities use lectio divina as a means
of 'chewing over' scripture – not to know more about it, but rather
to understand it, so that it makes its home with us. When they
pray seven times a day in the Divine Office they are contributing
to this process.

The texts of the psalms, in particular, express the
whole gamut of human experience and emotions; they speak richly
of our relationship with God: trust, doubt, love, fear – yes, and
anger too. They help us in our prayer: as part of, and in union with
the whole Church throughout the world, as we express solidarity
with those who are oppressed, those who fear, those who mourn –
and yet rejoice in the loving-kindness of our God.

Gregorian Chant (hereafter referred to as 'chant') – amongst
other forms of prayer – is ideally suited to this relationship, since the music
is wedded to the text (having been composed for it). The chanting
of a text helps to define it, to give it space to be
heard, and to be interiorised.

How to get started

There are a number of chant collections available, notably
those from the Abbey of Solesmes in France. These include Liber usualis –
music for the pre-Vatican II Roman Rite, Graduale Romanum– containing chants for the ordinary and propers of the Mass, Psalterium Monasticum– for
the Divine Office, and hymns in
the Liber Hymnarius.

A selection of the most popular chants, which are quite easy to
learn, can be found in the Liber cantualis (Desclée, 1978, 1993). Although this
volume has no introduction to singing the chant, as
can be found in Liber usualis, there are many other introductions
available, including web-based resources (see below).

An organ
accompaniment edition is also available. Opinions differ as to
whether the organ should be used or not, but only the hardest-hearted
purist would deny learners the sustenance of a few gentle
chords. (Throughout this article items are numbered according to the Liber cantualis, although
they also appear in other collections, including some hymnbooks.)

To begin with, it is worth looking at the structure of the chant,
as noting repeated sections will make the chant easier to learn. (Music examples have been provided here in modern notation
for ease of reading by newcomers to Gregorian chant.)

Verbum caro factum est (The Word was made flesh)

Responsories, like Verbum caro factum est (102, Christmas) for example, have the form:

Other examples of responsories with the same refrain 'alleluia' and similar
parts for cantor/choir are Surrexit Dominus vere (96, Easter) and Spiritus Paraclitus (95, for Pentecost).

Ubi caritas est vera (opening section)

The antiphon Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est (or its variant
Ubi caritas et amor) has a refrain sung three times, and twelve
verses. Closer inspection, however, shows that the structure of
refrain and four verses uses the same music; moreover, the music
for the first and second verses is similar, likewise with the third
and fourth verses – in other words there are really only three
different melodies in this fifteen-line chant.

(A – B1 – B2 – C1 – C2 sung
three times)

Seasonal chants that are not difficult to learn include:

Conditor alme siderum (78, Advent)

Rorate Caeli (93, Advent)

Ecce nomen Domine (82, Christmas)

Puer natus in Bethlehem (90, Christmas)

Attende Domine (70, Lent)

Parce Domine (89, Lent)

Victimae Paschali laudes (62, Easter)

Veni Sancte Spiritus (63, Pentecost).

These chants can be used over the course of several Sundays during a season, with increasing
familiarity and confidence. In this way, a repertoire can be built up
slowly but surely. And by the way, don't make the mistake of confining
the chant to Lent, on the false assumption that it is a gloomy style
of music. Each of these seasonal chants reflects a distinctive
seasonal mood. Yes, the distinction is subtle; but it is not absent.

Many choirs will already know some of the chant texts from
anthems in their repertoire. Balfour Gardiner's Evening Hymn uses
the text of the Compline hymn Te lucis ante terminum (104).
If you have sung one of the many settings of Ave verum corpus (75),
you could sing the chant version, which has inspired many of the choral
settings.

Allegri's Miserere is a difficult piece, so some choirs may
find the chant-only setting of Psalm 50 (51) a more suitable alternative (10).

Those who have sung plainchant in English might like to try
some of the more well known hymns in Latin, which can be found in some hymnbooks:

Adoro te devote (67, Godhead here in hiding)

Pange lingua gloriosi (97, Of the glorious body telling)

Veni Creator Spiritus (101, Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire).

Those thinking of singing any Duruflé would
also benefit from
singing chant first. His Requiem, Missa Cum jubilo, and the Quatre
Motets all are derived from chant, and combine the flexibility of chant
with brilliant modal harmonies. Likewise, many of his organ works – as are those of many
other composers – are based on chant settings.

Hymns, psalms and sacred songs

So where can chant be used in worship today? There are a number
of points in the liturgy that would benefit from the use of chant. Why
not replace one of your hymns with a chanted item?
Or you could use some chant in place of the usual choral anthem. Alternatively,
a gospel acclamation, or psalm text can be sung in chant. Provide
texts and translations in service sheets.

At Christmas Midnight
Eucharist there is often an extended service of readings; the Responsory Verbum caro factum est could be used after one of these.

In Remembrancetide or the month of November you could use the chant In paradisum as we remember those who have gone before us on the journey of faith.

Hearing the chant

There are many opportunities to hear the chant both in worship,
and on record. A number of monastic communities sing part or all
of their office in Latin chant, including the abbeys of Ampleforth, Buckfast, Downside, Quarr, (St Cecilia's) Ryde (in England), Pluscarden (in Scotland),
Christ in the Desert (USA). Chant is sung regularly in the liturgy
by the choirs of Westminster Cathedral (daily), Brompton
Oratory, London, and Boxgrove Priory; some Anglican and Roman Catholic cathedrals
also sing the chant in Latin.

Although at first hearing the chant may appear monotonous, a closer encounter reveals a wide diversity. On record, a great variety of styles within this genre can be evidenced.

The Schola Gregoriana of Cambridge under the direction of Dr Mary Berry
has made a number of important recordings of repertory and its use in the
liturgy from the tenth to the twentieth century
.

The Ensemble Gilles Binchois (Harmonic/Virgin)
and the
Ensemble Organum (Harmonia Mundi), amongst others, make
bold attempts at interpreting the rhythmic marks of the early manuscripts, which can be seen in
the Graduale Triplex (Solesmes). Inspired by the work of Dom Eugène Cardine, the
later recordings of Solesmes Abbey (Paraclete/Solesmes) have a more subtle
reinterpretation of these early rhythmic symbols.